There's a whiff of Lion both in the place the Steelers think they are headed and where the Browns hope they are not going.

Pittsburgh's crisp play down the stretch Sunday delivered a 37-27 win over Detroit. It was the latest jolt of juice in a 4-2 surge.

Cleveland led the Lions 17-0 before going completely tame in the second half of a 31-17 loss. It was the loss that triggered a 1-4 slump.

There is a bad whiff of Bengal on the Browns after a Sunday stinker in Cincinnati. For Pittsburgh, the whiff of Lion adds to a sweet scent that has masked the stink of an 0-4 start.

From these olfactory opposites, the old rivals steam into Sunday's game at Cleveland with identical 4-6 records. For one, 4-6 feels more like second place in the AFC North, which it is. For the other, 4-6 feels more like last place, which, with Baltimore also at 4-6, it is.

Sunday's invasion by Pittsburgh represents just the second Browns home game since the Oct. 13 Detroit debacle — they were outscored 24-0 in the second half.

The Browns take heart in the fact their only recent home game was a 24-18 win over Baltimore. Another encouragement: Starting with a 20-14 loss at Cleveland last Nov. 25, Pittsburgh is 2-6 on the road. And: despite their awful expansion-era record against Pittsburgh (4-24), the Browns are 2-2 in the last four meetings in Cleveland.

Pittsburgh week falls during a strange season. The Browns lost their first two games but then surged to a share of first place in the AFC North with three wins in 12 days. They were 3-2 after a Thursday night win over Buffalo. In the 50-plus days since then, the Browns have won just once.

The Steelers are in their own stretch of three games in 12 days. The two left in that grinder are the one at Cleveland followed by a Thursday night game at Baltimore.

The Browns need to make hay as they begin a run of three home games in four weeks.

The Steelers need to win at Cleveland and Baltimore for their favorable finishing stretch — three home games in four weeks — to matter.

As always, quarterback play will be key.

It is interesting to note that Browns QB Jason Campbell, who will turn 32 next month, is actually older than Steelers QB Ben Roethlisberger, who will turn 32 in March.

Nothing was similar about their most recent performances. Against the Bengals, Campbell coughed up three interceptions and posted the lowest passer rating for a Browns QB (44.3) since the 2012 season opener. Against the Lions, Roethlisberger racked up a 119.4 rating while throwing for 367 yards and four touchdowns.

"Maybe it made me more tradable," Roethlisberger said in what some saw as a joke, and others put in the category of one never knowing with him.

Page 2 of 2 - Nothing is similar about the quarterbacks' backgrounds with their 2013 teams. Roethlisberger has been Pittsburgh's No. 1 QB since 2004. Campbell is making his fourth start for Cleveland.

Head coach Rob Chudzinski first faced Roethlisberger in 2004, when he was a first-year Browns assistant.

"Over time," Chudzinski said, "he's shown the great player he is. He has a way of making plays, extending plays. He's been unbelievable in the clutch."

The Browns' strength is a defense that ranks No. 5 in the NFL in yards allowed. The Steelers' defense is No. 14, embarrassingly low by coordinator Dick LeBeau's standards.

Browns coordinator Ray Horton spent years with LeBeau as his boss, first in Cincinnati, later in Pittsburgh. The influence was strong.

"This will be the first time this year," Horton says, "when we'll be playing against our defense."

Both offenses — No. 15 Pittsburgh and No. 25 Cleveland — have been weak on the run.

In seven games with the Steelers, rookie Round 2 pick Le'Veon Bell has run for 375 yards, at 3.1 per carry. In eight games with the Browns, Willis McGahee has run 275 yards, at 2.6 per carry.

Roethlisberger has put together a good passing game from good 2010 draft picks. Sixth-round steal Antonio Brown has 74 catches for 952 yards. Third-rounder Emmanuel Sanders has 42 catches for 509 yards. Veteran Jerricho Cotchery has 34 catches for 503 yards.

The Browns are getting a strong return from the 2012 supplemental draft (Josh Gordon has 751 yards in eight games) but too little from the 2011 draft (second rounder Greg Little has 29 catches for 344 yards), and even less from free agency (Davone Bess has 32 catches for 288 yards).

Pittsburgh's defense is trying to resurface without longtime stalwarts James Harrison and Casey Hampton, and with aging mainstays such as Troy Polamalu and Brett Keisel. Keisel missed the Detroit game with a foot injury. His replacement, former Round 1 pick Ziggy Hood, had a late sack of Matthew Stafford to seal the win over Detroit.

"It was like an exclamation point for us," Hood said. "Each win has a significant role in our journey. This was a huge one."

Beating Pittsburgh could be huge for the Browns.

It would be much bigger than the two most recent wins over Pittsburgh, in that they would be 5-6, and no worse than a game out of the race for the second wild-card spot.

Also, it would get that disturbing whiff of Lion and Bengal out of their nostrils.